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Topic: *Industry News* 2011

Victory In Poland For Robertson

Neil Robertson won his first tournament for over a year by beating Ricky Walden 4-1 in the final of Players Tour Championship event six in Warsaw.

Australia's Robertson won the Betfred.com World Championship in May last year then the World Open in September, which put him top of the world rankings. He has since struggled to recapture that form, but played superbly in the first ever professional tournament in Poland to take the 10,000 Euro first prize.

The Thunder From Down Under won seven matches in all at the Arena Ursynow, finishing with a commanding win over Chester-based Walden. Breaks of 76, 69 and 95 gave Robertson three of the first four frames, Walden's response coming with a 62 in frame two. Frame five saw Walden open with a run of 46, but left-hander Robertson compiled a measured 68 clearance to secure victory.

"I couldn't have had a tougher draw as I've beaten the likes of Peter Ebdon, Stephen Maguire and Shaun Murphy to reach the final," said Robertson, who has now won a tournament carrying ranking points in each of the last six years. "I had been on a good run of form recently with a couple of semi-finals and I was really disappointed to lose in the semis of the Shanghai Masters. That was a wake up call because you have to be efficient in the final stages of tournaments. It's all about winning them because that's what you'll be remembered for. So I'm really pleased to convert this one.

"The PTC events are tiring and you have to really keep your concentration, so when I got the semis I made sure I knuckled down and stayed focussed."

Robertson, who moves up one place in the world rankings to fourth, believes there is potential for snooker to grow in Poland. "The crowds have been fantastic in all of my matches," he said. "That makes it easier to play because it gives you a buzz, and hopefully the people who came will go away with good memories. In Germany it took a few years for the support to grow and now we have a full ranking event there, so hopefully something similar can happen in Poland."

Earlier in the semi-finals, Walden edged a 4-3 win over 54-year-old snooker legend Steve Davis, who had enjoyed an inspired run to the latter stages. Robertson easily saw off Stephen Lee 4-0.

The Players Tour Championship is a series of 12 tournaments, six in the UK and six in Europe, with the top 24 in the final Order of Merit to qualify for the Grand Finals in March, providing they have played in at least three domestic and three overseas events. The seventh tournament in the series is at the South West Snooker Academy in Gloucester next week.

Results (last 16 onwards)

Last 16
Judd Trump 4-3 Matthew Selt
Ricky Walden 4-0 Liu Chuang
Steve Davis 4-3 Mark King
Jack Lisowski 4-3 Liang Wenbo
Fergal O'Brien 3-4 Xiao Guodong
Stephen Lee 4-2 Joe Swail
Neil Robertson 4-3 Stephen Maguire
Shaun Murphy 4-2 Ben Woollaston

Quarter-finals
Judd Trump 3-4 Ricky Walden
Steve Davis 4-2 Jack Lisowski
Xiao Guodong 3-4 Stephen Lee
Neil Robertson 4-3 Shaun Murphy

Semi-finals
Steve Davis 3-4 Ricky Walden
Stephen Lee 0-4 Neil Robertson

Final
Ricky Walden 1-4 Neil Robertson

ORCOLLO, BIADO OFF TO GOOD START IN BSCP NATIONAL POOL CHAMPIONSHIPS
BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

Billiard stars Dennis Orcollo and Carlo Biado got off to a blazing start by posting victories at the start of the 2011 BSCP National Pool Championships at the Star Billiards Center in Quezon City on Monday.

The top player of Bugsy Promotions Orcollo, also known as "Robocop," edged veteran campaigner Edgar Acaba, 8-, while fellow Bugsy bet Biado beat John Salazar, 8-7.

Acaba, who led for most part of the match, tied the score at 7-all and had a golden opportunity of completing an upset win by getting the privilege of breaking in the 15th and final rack.

Unfortunately, Acaba scratched the cue ball while going for the break, allowing the current world no.1 Orcollo to run out the table.

“I got lucky he scratched in the final rack. I was struggling the whole game, and was lucky to pull this one off,” said Orcollo, playing under the banner of sportsman/businessman Ceferino "Perry" Mariano.

A strong contender for the World Pool Association Player of the Year award, Orcollo was surprisingly trailing, 3-5, but won four of the next five racks to take the driver’s seat, 7-6.

A dry break in the 14th rack allowed Acaba to get back at the table and level the count at 7-all, setting up an exciting finish until disaster struck in the 15th when he scratched while breaking.

In contrast, Renemar "Revo" David, a former national junior standout, scored the biggest upset win of the day by upsetting former World 9-ball runner-up Roberto "Pinoy Superman" Gomez, 8-7, while Jeffrey de Luna, a perennial contender and the strongest powerbreaker in pool, showed up in tip-top condition by taking three straight matches by beating Mario Tolentino, 8-3, to stay on the winner’s bracket and extend his winning streak to three.

The power breaking De Luna asserted his dominance over Mario Tolentino, 8-3, to stay on the winner’s bracket and extend his winning streak to three.

Also keeping a perfect record were Johann Chua, Ricky Zerna, OFW Allan Cuartero and Rene Cruz.

Chua capped his run of victories with an 8-7 decision over Ramon Mistica.

Zerna also survived Oliver Villafuerte in another hill-hill encounter, 8-7.

Cruz stunned comebacking Leonardo Andam, 8-5, to complete the list of players on the winner’s bracket of the event that attracted 47 participants.

Two notable players also got the early exit door – reigning national junior champion Jonas Magpantay and veteran campaigner Ramil Gallego.

Relegated to the loser’s bracket early on, Magpantay lost 4-8, to Anjo Huelgas, kissing his hopes goodbye of earning a spot in the World Pool Summit.

Gallego also got the boot, bowing to Reggie Geronimo, 7-8.

Top 16 Line Up For UK And Masters Confirmed

The top 16 players in the updated world rankings will qualify automatically for two of snooker's biggest tournaments, the UK Championship and the Masters.

The cut-off point for seeding those events fell on Monday, with the top 16 guaranteed a place in those two BBC-televised events, as well as the German Masters.

Stuart Bingham and Martin Gould are both seeded among the top bracket for the first time, with Londoner Gould set to make his debut in the Masters in January. The full top 16 is:

1. Mark Selby
2. Mark Williams
3. John Higgins
4. Neil Robertson
5. Ding Junhui
6. Shaun Murphy
7. Ali Carter
8. Judd Trump
9. Stephen Maguire
10. Graeme Dott
11. Stuart Bingham
12. Mark Allen
13. Stephen Lee
14. Ronnie O'Sullivan
15. Matthew Stevens
16. Martin Gould

Stephen Hendry is in 21st place, which means that he will have to qualify for the UK Championship and could miss the Masters for the first time since 1989. There will be no wild cards for the Masters, unless a player seeded outside the top 16 wins the UK Championship.

The Masters runs from January 15 to 22 at Alexandra Palace, and the UK Championship is from December 3 to 11 at the York Barbican. TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW FOR BOTH EVENTS - see www.worldsnooker.com/tickets. The draw for both tournaments will take place shortly. The UK Championship qualifiers run from November 6 to 9 at the South West Academy in Gloucester.

Neil Robertson, who won the Players Tour Championship event in Poland on Sunday, said: "My target now is to keep this form going for the next few events, and I particularly want to do well in the UK and the Masters. I don't have a great record in either and I was disappointed to lose in the quarter-finals of both last season. I didn't prepare well enough last time, but this season I have been working really hard and that is paying off."

The German Masters runs from February 1 to 5 in Berlin. The top 64 in the new rankings also qualify for the World Snooker Shoot-Out in Blackpool from January 27 to 29, with tickets on sale at www.worldsnooker.com/tickets

CSI Sponsors Top Junior Players

CueSports International (CSI) sponsored 13 young players to the 2011 US Junior National 9-Ball Championships. Produced by the Billiard Education Foundation (BEF), the event was held at the Huskies Den at Northern Illinois University July 6-10.

The players CSI proudly supported this year were: Sheldon Barber (Gallup, NM), Shawn Begay (Gallup, NM), Chad Behnke (Farley, IA), Levi Behnke (Farley, IA), Chris Byers (Tualatin, OR), Mikey Evans (St. Peters, MO), Ricky Evans (St. Peters, MO), Danny Olson (Broomfield, CO), Manuel Perez (Kansas City, KS), Sergio Rivas (Milwaukee, WI), Kirk Short (St. Clair, MO), Joey Torres (Tomball, TX) and JC Torres (Tomball, TX).

CSI wishes to congratulate the following players for placing in their divisions: Danny Olson (1st Place in the Boys 19 and Under), Chad Behnke (4th Place in the Boys 19 and Under), Shawn Begay (2nd Place in the Boys 14 and Under) and Joey Torres (4th Place in the Boys 14 and Under). Over 100 junior players participated in this year’s BEF produced event with the hope of winning titles, scholarships, prizes and compete in the World Pool Billiard Association (WPA) World Junior 9-Ball Championships which were held in Kielce, Poland September 1-4.

In addition to competing in this year’s junior nationals, several CSI sponsored players have also successfully competed in the BCAPL Nationals.

Long time participants in the BCAPL National Championships, Chad and Levi Behnke hail from the well known pool and billiard Behnke family. The young brothers have cashed in several BCAPL national divisions including the Men’s Open Singles and Mixed Open Team representing their family’s pool room, the Dakota Cue Club.

In 2011 Danny Olson, at age 18, had a banner year. In addition to winning the US Junior National 9-Ball title, he won the Men’s Advanced Singles and was a member of “the Wrecking Crew” which finished 9th in the Mixed Open Team division at the 35th BCAPL National Championships this past May at the Riviera Hotel & Casino.

Chris Byers, in his first year at the BCAPL nationals became noticed quickly. At age 17 Byers was a member of “Abracadabra,” the 1st place Mixed Open Team finishers and out of 1328 entries, finished 2nd in the highly competitive Men’s Open Singles division.

CSI is proud to be able to support these tremendous young talents and the BEF in their goals and the US Junior National 9-Ball Championships.

CueSports International is dedicated to creating more choices for all players. In the past seven years CSI has directly paid out approximately Seven Million Dollars to players. CSI is the parent company of the BCA Pool League and the USA Pool League. CSI also produces independent events such as the US Bar Table Championships, the Jay Swanson Memorial, the US Open One Pocket Championship and the US Open 10-Ball Championship. Visit www.playcsipool.com, www.playbca.com and www.playusapool.com for more information about CSI and its divisions.    

::: NEWS FLASH :::

Dynamic Euro-Tour to be staged in Treviso, Italy, in December

Wednesday, 05 October 2011: The final Dynamic Euro-Tour of the 2011 season will be played from December 1st to 3rd, 2011, in BHR Hotel in Treviso, Italy.

Since the word spread after last week’s press release about the fact that the recent Dynamic Euro-Tour in Hungary would be the last one for 2011, the Italian Federation has done some immediate research on possible venues for another tournament this year. They came up with a renowned site for Euro-Tour events, the BHR Hotel in Treviso. After submitting all proposals to the Euro-Tour organizers lately, the management of the IBP agreed to have another event in Treviso this year. It will be the second time the tour stops in Treviso after April and the experiences from the previous events are very good. “We are looking forward to coming back to BHR Hotel in Treviso once again”, said David Morris, IBP President, “we only have the best experiences there and we know we can rely on a productive cooperation in order to be able to present the professional setup for our event that our players are used to get”.

The Dynamic Euro-Tour Treviso Open will be the sixth and final event of the 2011 series.

The Euro-Tour event will be hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the event website www.eurotouronline.eu or contact our press office.

BIADO BEATS ORCOLLO, REACH FINALS
BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

FOR the second time in five months, up-and-coming star Carlo Biado has beaten fellow Bugsy Promotions mainstay world No.1 and World 8-Ball champion Dennis Orcollo, serving strong notice on his title aspiration in the 8-Ball event and grand championship of the 2011 BSCP National Pool Championships.

Biado defeated Orcollo, 8-5, on Wednesday night at the Star Billiards Center and advanced to the finals of this tournament that serves as a qualifying event for the World Pool Summit.

"Carlo (Biado) is the most under rated player today," said sportsman/businessman Ceferino "Perry" Mariano of Bugsy Promotions, long-time manager, both Biado and Orcollo.

A semifinalist in the World Ten Ball Championship and one of the few players who made a big jump in the world rankings, Biado will meet Allan Cuartero, who escaped with an 8-7 win over Ricky Zerna, in the other Semifinal.

Biado came to the semifinals oozing with confidence after sweeping Johann Chua, 8-0. The victory gave the young player more confidence in pulling off another stunning win against Orcollo, one of the few world champions he defeated in the WTBC last May.

A former caddie-turned-pool player, Biado attributed his victory to the breaks of the game.

“He was struggling breaking the balls. In fact, he had three dry breaks, ,” said Biado.

In reaching the finals, payback will be on the mind of Biado, who lost a tough 8-7 decision to Cuartero earlier in the 8-ball event.

“I like my chances against Cuartero, but it’s not a guarantee of a win because he’s a veteran player and I lost to him the last time around,” added Biado.

Cuartero escaped Zerna, the same player who couldn’t hit the big one during his game against Orcollo.

Zerna came close to reaching the semifinal round trouble free on Tuesday night by nearly shocking Orcollo only to lose in a hill-hill encounter, 8-7, after failing to capitalize on two breaks to clinch the match.

Against Cuartero, pressure caught up with Zerna once more as he missed the 8-ball in Rack 15, allowing his rival to escape with the win -- and a seat in the finals.

ORCOLLO, CUARTERO WINS; BIADO FALTERS IN 9-BALL COMPETITION

BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

CURRENT World no.1 and World 8-ball champion Dennis "Robocop" Orcollo played even better in his second game in the 9-ball leg of the BSCP National Pool Championship, turning back Marvin Tapia, 9-4, to remain unscathed being held at the Star Billiards Center in Grace Village, Quezon City on Thursday.

"Maganda y'ung latag ng bola," said Orcollo, playing under the banner of sportsman/businessman Ceferino "Perry" Mariano of Bugsy Promotions.

"Hope mahawakan natin y'ung momentum," added Orcollo, who brought downed Alexander Arenal, 9-7, at the start of the 9-ball competition.

Orcollo next opponent is Arvi Tanega.

However, fellow Bugsy stablemate Carlo "Cool" Biado failing to sustain the momentum of his semi-finals victory in the 8-ball competition Wednesday night, bowing to Jeffrey "The Bull" de Luna, 3-9, and relegated him to the loser's brackets in this event hosted by long-time billiards patron Sebastian "Baste" Chua of Star Paper.

"Kailangan maipanalo ko lahat ng laro ko sa loser's brackets para makapasok sa final four," added Biado, a semi-finalist in this year's World Ten Ball Championships in Manila.

Meanwhile, Allan Cuartero, another semifinalists in the 8-ball competition who will face Biado in the 8-ball finals on October 9, continued to make waves by beating Judy Villanueva, 9-6, Jeff Diaz, 9-7; and Richard Alinsub, 9-8 (in this match coming from behind 5-8 ), respectively.

Also winning three matches on Day 3 were Jericho Banares, Roberto Gomez and Rene Cruz.

Banares beat youthful standout Johann Chua, 9-5; Cocong Acaba, 9-3, and repeated his earlier victory over Biado’s nemesis Jeffrey de Luna, 9-7.

Gomez beat Ramon Mistica, 9-4; Mario Tolentino , 9-8, ; and recent Jogjakarta 9-ball champion Victor Arpilleda, 9-7.

The 9-day competition (Oct 3-11) is divided into three events for the men’s championship: 8-Ball (Oct 3-5), 9-Ball (Oct. 6-8 ), and 10-Ball (Oct. 9-11).

The Women’s division will be contested only in only one disciple – 10-Ball (Oct. 6-8 ). The official broadcaster of the tournament is AKTV IBC-13. The finals of all the tournaments will be broadcast from Oct. 9 to11.

ORCOLLO BEATS CUARTERO; GAIN SEMIS BERTHS IN BSCP NATIONAL OPEN 9-BALL
BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

CURRENT World no.1 and World 8-ball champion Dennis Orcollo got the better of Allan Cuartero to storm into the semifinals with a 9-5 victory on Friday in the 9-ball competition of the BSCP National Pool Championship at the Star Billiards Center in Grace Village, Quezon City.

The win gave the man known as “The Robocop” one of the two outright seats in the Final Four of the event, that serves as a qualifying event for the AKTV World Pool Summit in November.

“Slowly but surely, I’m beginning to get my game going,” said Orcollo, top player of sportsman/businessman Ceferino "Perry" Mariano of Bugsy Promotions.

"Sana mahawakan ni Dennis y'ung momentum. Ito na lamang kasi ang kulang kay Dennis na manalo ng National Open," said Bugsy Promotions honcho Ceferino "Perry" Mariano.

Orcollo started to break the game wide open beginning the 10th rack when he won three consecutive racks en route to posting an 8-4 lead.

Although Cuartero managed to salvage a game in the 13th, there was no denying the hottest player in the international circuit as he went back to the table in the 14th and disposed off the remaining balls one by one to complete the win – and hand Cuartero his first loss in nine matches stretching back to the 8-Ball event that started Monday.

Cuartero, who is already assured of a finals berth in the 8-Ball event, fell into the loser’s bracket and will await the winner of the Leonardo "Dodong" Andam-Carlo "Cool" Biado match.

While Orcollo was beginning to make his presence felt in the 9-Ball event, Jerico Banares was sizzling on all fronts, winning his first five games capped by a near perfect performance against Roberto "Pinoy Superman" Gomez.

Banares, the former Philippine junior champion, nearly swept Gomez, the former world pool runner-up, 9-1.

The youthful cue artists from Antipolo City also had a near flawless performance on Thursday night when he subdued Jeff de Luna, 9-1. In beating Gomez, Banares joined Orcollo as the only players to advance to the Final Four so far.

Renemar "Revo" David, another rising pool star, and Rodrigo "Edgie" Geronimo pulled off contrasting victories in the loser’s bracket to keep their flickering hopes alive for the other two semis berths.

David whipped veteran Rene Cruz, 9-6, while Geronimo edged Arvi Tanega in a hill-hill encounter, 9-8.

FILIPINO MAZON ENTERS FINALS OF CHINA 9-BALL INVITATIONAL; 'BATA' FALTERS
BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

FORMER Guinness World Series of Pool Champion Jundel "Janno" Mazon of the Philippines gained a spot in the finals Saturday of the 2011 China 9-Ball Invitational Championships with a heart-stopping 11-10 victory over compatriot Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza.

The Davao City bet Corteza was so confident at the start of the match that he immediately took a 6-4 lead against fellow Negros Billiards Stable (NBS) bet Mazon
in the match being held at the Best Bet Maccaline Plaza in Hefei City, Anhui Province in Eastern China.

But the table turned against Corteza as Mazon won 11th and 12th racks for posted a 2-0 rally to tied the match at 6-all count. Corteza, however, made a comeback winning two of the three racks to seized a 8-7 lead in the race-to-eleven, alternate break format.Mazon won the 16th racks to level 8-all count.

After trading racks, Corteza and Mazon, both stint here are backed up by Energen and Kopiko, tied the match again at 10-all count in the 20th racks.

In the 21st racks, Corteza, a former World Ten Ball finalist and BSCP National Pool Champion played safety in the blue 2 ball but Mazon managed to sink the blue 2 ball and clean up the table to escaped a narrow 11-10 victory over his NBS team mate.

"It was just all luck. I hope that this luck will still follow me in my finals match against Chao Fong Pao." said Mazon to his manager, sportsman/businessman Jonathan "Bacolod" Sy of the star-studded Negros Billiards Stable (NBS).

"We hope that Janno (Jundel Mazon) can maintain his momentum against Chao Fong Pao in the finals," said sportsman/businessman Jonathan "Bacolod" Sy of the star-studded Negros Billiards Stable (NBS).

Mazon will face Chao Fong Pao, a former World 9-ball champion from Chinese-Taipei but migrated in China for the championship crown and the top prize of $16,000. Chao prevent a possible an all-Filiipino finals when he outclassed his nemesis Filipino pool legend Efren "Bata" Reyes, 11-16, in another semi-final match-up.

Mazon and Chao, both assured at least $8,000 for reaching the finals. Losing Semi-Finalists Corteza and Reyes, on the other hand didn't go empty-handed, as both will be receiving $4,000 each.

Crucible Snooker Tickets On Sale

Tickets for all sessions of the 2012 Betfred.com World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield are now on sale.

Fans are advised to secure their seats immediately as tickets will sell out rapidly, particularly for the latter stages of the sport's biggest tournament.

BOOK NOW BY CALLING 0844 6565 147 or visiting www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

Last year saw record sales, with ticket revenue up by 15 per cent. Fans who attended enjoyed one of the best tournaments in recent years, including a pulsating final which saw John Higgins beat Judd Trump 18-15.

The 2012 event runs from April 21 to May 7. Higgins will be defending his title, with the likes of Mark Selby, Mark Williams, Neil Robertson and Trump likely to be among the main contenders.

The seeding cut off point, which will determine the 16 players to qualify automatically for the Crucible, falls in February after the Welsh Open.

FILIPINO MAZON FINISHES 2ND IN CHINA 9-BALL MEET; POCKETS $8,000
BY: MARLON BERNARDINO

FILIPINO Jundel "Janno" Mazon made some of his trademark shots but settled only for a runner-up finish behind former World Pool Champion Chao Fong Pao at the conclusion of the 2011 China 9-Ball Invitational Championships at the Best Bet Maccaline Plaza in Hefei City, Anhui Province in Eastern China, over the weekend.

Mazon whose stint here is backed up by Energen and Kopiko found Chao too hot to handle as the hometown bet came through with tough shots of his own after winning the lag on the way to posting a 11-8 win that earned him the $16,000 winner’s prize.

"Ang hirap ng naghahabol kasi naka una agad siya (Chao Fong Pao)," said Mazon, one of the top player of Jonathan Sy's Negros Billiards Stable to his coach Christopher "Toper" Palses.

"Bawi na lamang next time," added Mazon, who settled runner-up prize of $8,000.

According to NBS head coach Christopher "Toper" Palses, Chao immediately took a 4-1, 9-4 to 10-8 lead against Mazon."Naka dikit pa sa 10-8 si Janno (Jundel Mazon) kaso naubos ni Chao (Fong Pao) ang lahat ng bola sa pagsargo sa 19th racks," said Palses.

However, Mazon, a former Guinness World Series of Pool Champion bounced back winning four of the five racks to cut the lead at 10-8 count before Chao finished the game in the 19th racks.

Despite the loss, Mazon remained the best Filipino finisher in the said event. Among his victim were Chan Du Long of China, 9-3, in the Last 32, Gou Hua of China, 9-5, in the Last 16, Yang Chin-shun of Chinese-Taipei, 11-9, in the Last 8 and countryman Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza, 11-10, in the Last 4.

Aside from Mazon and Corteza, other Filipino cue masters seeing in action were hall of famer Efren "Bata" Reyes, Warren "Warrior" Kiamco, Antonio "Nickoy" Lining and Panfilo "Lintok" Damuag.

O'Sullivan Wins Second PTC Title

Ronnie O'Sullivan won his second Players Tour Championship event of the season with a 4-2 defeat of Matthew Stevens in the final in Gloucester.

The Rocket won PTC1 earlier this season and took the £10,000 top prize again at the seventh event in the series, which was named the Kay Suzanne Memorial Trophy.

O'Sullivan has not won a full ranking event for over two years and has slipped to No 14 in the world, but has thrived in the PTCs and leads the Order of Merit.

Breaks of 95 and 76 saw him take a 2-0 lead in the final before Welshman Stevens pulled one back by winning a scrappy third frame on the colours.

A run of 53 put three-times World Champion O'Sullivan 3-1 ahead then Stevens showed his class with a 127 to win frame five. But any hopes of a fight-back were short lived as a smooth 88 from O'Sullivan in the next gave him the title.

All players wore pink shirts at the event to raise money and awareness for Breast Cancer Care.

The PTC is a series of 12 short events, with the top 24 on the final Order of Merit going through to the Grand Final in March, providing they have played in at least three domestic events and three overseas. The next tournament is PTC8 in Killarney, Ireland, which starts on October 20.

Results (last 16 onwards)

Last 16
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-2 Stephen Maguire
Mark King 3-4 Liu Chuang
Andrew Higginson 3-4 Michael White
Joe Perry 0-4 Kyren Wilson
Ali Carter 3-4 Matthew Stevens
Liang Wenbo 2-4 Shaun Murphy
Graeme Dott 0-4 Jamie Jones
Li Yan 3-4 Jimmy Robertson

Quarter-finals
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-1 Liu Chuang
Michael White 4-1 Kyren Wilson
Matthew Stevens 4-2 Shaun Murphy
Jamie Jones 2-4 Jimmy Robertson

Semi-finals
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-2 Michael White
Matthew Stevens 4-0 Jimmy Robertson

Final
Ronnie O'Sullivan 4-2 Matthew Stevens

ABP Guidelines & Format for Sanctioned Events

From the Association of Billiard Professionals

The ABP is pleased to announce the Official ABP Rules of the men's pro tour of pool. These rules were created by the top pro players in the world. These rules and guidleines will go into effect in 2012. The following is the established guidelines and rules of the Association of Billiard Professionals.

Sanctioning guidelines to be a national United States ABP Ranking Points event:

* $25,000 minimum added
* $300 minimum entry fee *unless the added money is above $25,000
* Event must seed at minimum the top 16 ranked ABP players properly from #1-16 (not random seeding)
* Seeding will go by ABP rankings
* ABP encourages all promoters to use the ABP Pro Rules
* All new promoters must have the added prize money and entries sent in advance before the tournament dates. Contact ABP for details

Format: All of the following applies to 10-Ball & 9-Ball.

* Winner breaks
* 9-Ball minimum race to 11
* 10-Ball minimum race to 9
* Double elimination. *if a major network televised event, reasonable exceptions can be made in formats
* One race finals

Rules:

* Call shot & call safety
* Missed shot or accidental pocketing even in safes will be Shoot Again option by the opponent
* Break box
* 10-Ball/9ball does not count on break anywhere
* Rack your own balls
(*more rules will be added later, these are the ABP Rule basics)

Benefits for promoters:

* ABP will publicize and encourage all pro players to participate including the top 50 ranked
* Promoters may use ABP pro players in advertisements to promote the event
* ABP will provide pro players to attend pro-am events/charities if applicable to the event
* Unification of rules and format helps the sport. Promoters will benefit from using the rules and format that the pro membership desires and avoid confusion of rules

To sanction your event or to join the ABP, please contact us at abppropool@ gmail.com or visit www.abp-players.com

The Association of Billiard Professionals was formed in March of 2010 with the goal of uniting the world’s greatest players. The ABP is harnessing the power of all professional players for a common goal: to improve the sport of billiards so that associations, promoters, sponsors and players alike may work in conjunction to advance the game.
For more info on ABP go visit www.abp-players.com or email abppropool@ gmail.com

League of Champions Garnering Notable Support From Billiard Industry

UPA Announces Two New Industry Leading Key Sponsors

PHOENIX, AZ (October 12, 2011) - The United States Professional Poolplayers Association (UPA) welcomes two new sponsors to its premier League of Champions Sponsor roster, Tiger Cues and Aramith Balls, as Official Cue Tip Sponsor and Official Ball Sponsor, respectively. Tiger and Aramith join Poison Cues and Instroke Cases as Official League of Champions Sponsors through the end of 2012. The UPA is one of the very few billiard companies to have this kind of support from the industry.

"It's been long overdue, however timing couldn't have been more perfect for us," said the Executive Director of the UPA Tour, Darrin Brown. "Tiger is now the Official Cue Tip Sponsor of the UPA and we couldn't be more proud and happy to have them on board. We love their quality products and we look forward to promoting them on our website and to all our members nationwide."

Tiger Products has been widely recognized for producing quality tips and has even been recommended by 2 time 2005 UPA Tour Champion, Shawn Putnam. Tiger Products are proudly made in the U.S.A. using the finest materials. Tiger is well known for being the cue tip where craftsmanship and technology unite. To learn more about their products visit their website at www.tigerproducts.com.

Aramith Billiard Balls have been setting the industry standard for professional billiard balls for over half a century. The key to the quality of their pool balls is phenolic resin which features excellent physical and chemical characteristics. Today, Aramith Balls is the only company worldwide producing phenolic billiard balls, exporting over 99% of them to more than 60 countries. Find out more about Aramith Billiard Balls at www.saluc.com.

The UPA League of Champions has rapidly expanded in the past year and now includes 19 states across the nation with a rapid growth rate of membership that has tripled in the past 6 months alone. If you are interested in joining The Evolution of Pool ™ as a sponsor, member or league operator, please visit our website at www.upatour.com for more information. If you are interested in becoming a member, please take a moment to check out our membership packages HERE. To speak to a representative about becoming a League Operator, please take a moment to fill out our Initial Form.

About UPA
The United States Professional Poolplayers Association brand represents the ideal in the sport of pocket billiards in the United States, formed in January 2002 by professional players. The UPA brand is positioned well for the future as the standard bearer for the evolution of the sport adopting the motto: "The Evolution of Pool™."

O'Sullivan Unconcerned By Rankings Fall

Ronnie O'Sullivan insists he is not worried by his tumble down snooker's world ranking list.

The Rocket was ranked No 1 in the world less than two years ago, but is now down to 12th despite winning Players Tour Championship event seven last Sunday.

He was even in danger of dropping out of the top 16 at the recent seedings cut-off point, but managed to keep his place and guarantee himself a spot at the UK Championship and the Masters.

"I'm not bothered where I am in the rankings, the game is going through changes and I'm just going to sit tight and be patient," said the 35-year-old three-times World Champion.

"I'm not going to go through what Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry have done, trying to compete as they did in their prime. I've accepted that I'm not as young as I was and I don't pot balls like I used to, or like the new players can. I'm just taking each tournament as it comes and trying to enjoy snooker."

The UK Championship has moved to its former home at the Barbican Centre in York, with a shorter format featuring best-off-11 frame matches until the quarter-finals, rather than best-of-17.

"York is a nice venue and we had good crowds when we were there before," added O'Sullivan, who thumped Ken Doherty 10-1 in the 2001 UK final in York. "I don't mind whether it's best of 11 or best of one, with or without a shot-clock. I'll just turn up and play."

The UK Championship runs from December 3 to 11, for tickets call 0844 854 2757 or visit www.yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Then it's the Masters at Alexandra Palace in London from January 15 to 22. O'Sullivan is aways a crowd favourite in snooker's biggest invitation event and has lifted the trophy four times. For tickets call 0871 620 7052 (Calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras) or visit www.worldsnooker.com/tickets

FINAL OF FUTURE STARS OF SNOOKER 2011

Tuesday 18th October

The final of Future Stars of Snooker 2011, which was originally due to take place on 11 August, has now been rescheduled to take place on Tuesday 18th October at Rileys Victoria.

Seven young hopefuls from across the UK will be competing for the title of Future Star 2011 and a cash prize of £5,000.

The seven youngsters will undertake 5 tasks set for them to test their skills and accuracy, each task is pointed and will be scored accordingly. The final will be judged by snooker legend Ronnie O'Sullivan.

The Future Stars of Snooker is a competition which was introduced for the first time in 2010 by Rileys & Ronnie O'Sullivan to find the next star of snooker.

Ronnie O'Sullivan says: "This is an amazing opportunity for the kids. There's a lot of money to be made in professional snooker nowadays, especially with all the new tournaments Barry Hearn has introduced."

Ronnie adds: "It's great to see snooker appealing to a younger crowd, I think the likes of Judd Trump coming into the game has been a real boost for the sport. Last year's standard in the final of Future Stars was unbelievable; there are a lot of talented youngsters around and I'm really looking forward to seeing how these kids do."

To get through to the final the boys had to win their heats in local qualifiers which took place at Rileys clubs across the UK in March, before going on to take part in regional finals in April and winning.

Maurice Kelly, CEO of Rileys said: "We introduced this competition to help give someone a start on their career path in snooker. The £5,000 prize money goes towards providing assistance with tournaments and general expenses, so we hope it pays off for one of these boys. As Ronnie says, there is good money to be made in professional snooker and we'd love to see a Future Stars competitor go on to make it big."

The seven finalists competing for the title of Future Star 2011and £5,000 prize money are: Elliot Slessor from Gateshead; George Pragnell from Norwich; Robert Dagnall from Rainford, St Helens; Adam Bobat from Fareham, Hants; Toby Simpson from Long Eaton, Nottingham; Steven Hallworth from Skellingthorpe, Lincoln; Jamie Clarke from Pemberton, Llanelli

SOUQUET VS ORCOLLO IN PBB FACE OFF SERIES AT THE PAGCOR AIRPORT CASINO
by Marlon Bernardino

FILIPINO Dennis "Robocop" Orcollo and German Ralf "Kaiser" Souquet rekindle their rivalry as the two pool masters collide in Philippines Bigtime Billiards (PBB) Face Off Series gets underway on November 5 at the PAGCOR Airport Casino in Paranaque City.

The match,a race-to-9 ten-ball affair, is set to give Philippine billiards another milestone as the first to be aired worldwide thru internet and TV4 every Saturday.

"It’s nice to be playing again with Ralf," said the World no.1 and World 8-ball champion Orcollo, who lost to Souquet in the finals of World Pool Masters last month at the SM North Edsa in Quezon City.

The Philippines Bigtime Billiards Face Off is presented by Mega Sports World and BRKHRD Corporation, and supported by PAGCOR, ACCEL, Diamond Table, San Miguel Beer Pale Pilsen, Malungai Life Oil, Hebrew Cafe, Human Plus Probiotics, Golden Leaf Restaurant, Hermes Sports, Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) with the Philippine Star as the official media partner.

"I feel honored to be invited to play against the best billiards player in the world and I promise to play my best," said Souquet, former World 8-ball and 9-ball champion.

"It’s a very interesting match," said Bugsy Promotions head Ceferino "Perry" Mariano. "Dennis and Ralf, both hottest player today" added BRKHRD Corporation representative Reli de Leon.

The Orcollo-Souquet match is part of a series of challenge matches Mega Sports World and BRKHRD Corporation are putting up.

Other Filipino cue masters invited to play are hall of famer Efren "Bata" Reyes, Ronato "Volcano" Alcano, Roberto "Pinoy Superman" Gomez, Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza, Antonio "Nickoy" Lining, Renemar "Karate Kid" David, Leonardo "Dodong Karambola" Andam and Carlo "The Black Tiger" Biado who is fresh from winning the toughest BSCP National Pool Championships. Not to be outdone are foreign counterpart that includes Mika "The Iceman" Immonen of Finland, Thorsten "The Hitman" Hohmann of Germany, Johnny "The Scorpion" Archer, Shane "South Dakota Kid" Van Boening, Charlie "Dragon" Williams and Mike Dechaine of the USA, Daryl Peach and Darren Appleton of England, Yang Ching-shun, Chang Jun-ling and Ko Pin-yi of Chinese-Taipei, Yukio Akagariyama of Japan.For inqury, call or text 0917-816-8675 or 373-7181 for complete details.


MEGA SPORTS WORLD trading manager Louis Watts (seated second from left) and BRKHRD Corporation representative Reli de Leon (seated third from left) shakes hand to formalize the opening of the forthcoming Philippines Bigtime Billiards or much known PBB Face Off scheduled on November 5 at the PAGCOR Airport Casino in Paranaque City. Also in photo are current World Pool Masters champion Ralf "Kaiser" Souquet of Germany (seated left) and World Pool Champion Francisco "Django" Bustamante of the Philippines (seated right). For inqury, call or text 0917-816-8675 or 373-7181 for complete details.

White - Senior Success Is Massive Thrill

Jimmy White believes he can still reproduce the form of his hey-day as he looks forward to defending his World Seniors Championship crown in Peterborough.

The Whirlwind won the inaugural event last year by beating Steve Davis 4-1 in the final, and he'll be trying to repeat that success at the East of England Showground on November 5 and 6.

"My form comes and goes, which is what happens when you're an old campaigner," said the 49-year-old, who has won ten ranking events. "You just have to keep punching, and every now and then it all comes together, and when that happens I can beat anyone.

"It was fantastic to win the first World Seniors title last year, I really enjoyed it and I can't wait to try to defend it in Peterborough in a few weeks time. After I get back from the PTC event in Ireland next week I'll be concentrating on getting my game ready. It's going to be tough this year because there are a lot of very good players in it."

White has been drawn against former World No 2 and fellow crowd favourite Tony Knowles in the first round. "Tony and I have had some great battles over the years," added White. "I played some exhibitions with him in Thailand recently, he's still got it and he still wants to win. I'll need to give it 100 per cent."

Alongside White, Davis and Knowles, legends of snooker such as Dennis Taylor, John Parrott, Cliff Thorburn, Joe Johnson and Doug Mountjoy will be competing for the £18,000 top prize in the tournament which will be televised live by Sky Sports.

TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW. To book call 0871 620 7052 (calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras) or visit www.worldsnooker.com/tickets. The website also gives details of a special offer: buy a ticket for the Seniors event and you can get a ticket for The Masters in January for as little as £5.

The full first round draw is:

Tony Drago v Steve Davis
Dene O'Kane v Neal Foulds
Karl Townsend v Steve Ventham
John Parrott v Joe Johnson
Jimmy White v Tony Knowles
Nigel Bond v Dennis Taylor
Gary Wilkinson v Darren Morgan
Cliff Thorburn v Doug Mountjoy

LIVE SPORT, LIVE MUSIC, LIVE TV
The 2011 Power Snooker Masters Trophy is coming to Manchester

Tickets on-sale for the biggest sports gig in town

Power Snooker, the event where sport meets entertainment, is coming to Manchester!

On 19 & 20 November, Event City at the Trafford Centre will play host to a brand new event for the Northwest. 16 of the world's top snooker players will be battling it out in quickfire knockout rounds of snooker, but not as you know it!

Each game will last no more than 30 minutes, the shot-clock will ensure a fast paced game, and the audience can be forgiven for feeling like they're in more of a darts environment than at a snooker event.

The 2011 Power Snooker Masters Trophy, which is endorsed by World Snooker, will feature the top 16 players in the world, names to be confirmed shortly, follow us @PowerSnooker as we reveal the players.

Live music from the Power Snooker band will keep the audience entertained in between games, and the sexy Power Girls will be walking the players out onto the main stage in the arena.

The whole gig will be shown live on ITV4 over the weekend.

Organiser Rod Gunner, the man who brought us the Bee Gees, back in the days when he was at Robert Stigwood explains what Power Snooker is all about: "Power Snooker is like nothing you've seen before. There's still the skill of snooker, but at a much faster pace, which makes it more interesting for your everyday sports fan.

Rod adds: "People will have the choice of watching the action live in the main arena, or if they'd just like a day and night out with their mates enjoying the atmosphere they can buy tickets for the Fanzone where they can watch the action on the big screens, have a few drinks & food, watch the players practising and do a bit of celeb spotting."

Andy Orr from Event City says: “We are really excited about Power Snooker, it's a first for the region and it's going to be huge. Event City is now fast becoming the venue in the Northwest for must see events!"

The 2011 Power Snooker Masters Trophy is at Event City, Trafford Centre, Manchester on 19 & 20 November.

For more information on Power Snooker visit www.powersnooker.com

For tickets visit www.ticketline.co.uk/power-snooker

Win a fantastic trip to the Mosconi Cup!

Four lucky fans set for MGM Grand showdown

WITH THE 2011 PartyPoker.net Mosconi Cup once again returning to Las Vegas, Matchroom Sport have teamed up with Hard Times Billiards in Bellflower, California and Crown City Billiards to offer two trips for two persons to the most exciting billiards event in the world!

In 2009, we celebrated the Mosconi Cup’s return to the USA by generously sponsoring the world’s longest running weekly 9-ball tournament at Hard Times which is now entering its 24th year and still going strong.

The ensuing fanfare and enthusiasm contributed to a sold-out Mosconi Cup event where Team USA was able to take back the Cup by an emphatic 11-7 score line, having lost it in the prior two meetings.

Now, Team USA once again comes in as the underdog having lost the 2010 matchup, so it’s time to do this again and bring the Mosconi Cup back to US soil!

Come participate in the upcoming Hard Times first Sunday tournament and get your chance to win a grand prize trip for two to experience LIVE Mosconi Cup.

The two grand prize packages consists of:

•         Five nights stay at the MGM Grand in two x queen-size beds or 1 x king-size bed, check in Wednesday 7th, depart Monday 12th December!

•         Two season passes to all four days of the Mosconi Cup!

•         Invitation for two to the Mosconi Cup Players’ Reception at the MGM Grand on the evening of Wednesday 7th December and your chance to meet both sets of players!

•         $500 spending cash for your weekend in Vegas!

How to enter: participate in the Hard Times Billiards’ $1,000 added 1st Sunday of the Month tournaments held Sunday November 6th and/or Sunday December 4th 2011 at Hard Times Billiards in Bellflower, CA.

Details: the tournament entry fee is $30, registration begins at noon and tournament play begins at 1pm. You must complete an official Grand Prize Drawing entry form at the time of your registration and all entrants will receive a free promotional gift ($25 value). The Grand Prize (2) drawing will be held on Sunday December 4th (approximately 6pm) at Hard Times Billiards in Bellflower, CA.

Total sponsorship support is valued at over $5,000!

Sweaters & rail birds alike are highly encouraged to join the festivities; however only actual tournament entrants will qualify for the drawing.

For more information about these events, email crowncitycorey@yahoo.com

Crown City Billiards (Pasadena, CA) is a world leading billiards sports academy, pro shop, and cue repair facility which is committed to the marketing and promotion of billiards as a competitive sport. For more information, visit their website at www.crowncitybilliards.com